Metal Buildings
Steel framing fabricated in our own shop, engineered to your spans and loads.
Why steel
Pre-engineered metal buildings make up a large share of low-rise non-residential construction, mostly because they are a cost-effective answer for the people who own and occupy them.
- Clear span with no interior columns, so the floor plan is yours
- Lighter than conventional steel, which means a lighter and cheaper foundation
- Standardized components, so design and erection both move faster
- Lower cost per square foot, and a quicker delivery
- Windows, doors and ventilation use interchangeable parts
- Strong, and nothing in it interests a termite
- Straightforward to expand later without compromising the structure
- Recyclable at end of life, and contributes toward LEED® and Energy Star
Shops, barns and buildings on your own place
Not everything we build is commercial. A good share of our work is the building somebody puts up on their own land: a shop to work in, a place to park equipment out of the weather, hay and feed storage, a ranch headquarters that is part shop and part office.
These are the same steel frames we fabricate for commercial work, engineered to your spans and loads, and we still pour the foundation and put the building up. What changes is what the building has to satisfy. A commercial job answers to code, accessibility and inspection. A shop answers to you.
- Shops and working buildings
- Equipment, implement and hay storage
- Livestock and working facilities — we have built agricultural buildings across Central Texas since the 1970s
- Ranch headquarters and saddle and tack buildings
- Combination buildings — working bay on one end, finished space on the other
Covered space with no walls is the cheapest square footage on the job, and on most shops it is the part that gets used hardest — equipment parked out of the sun, a place to work outside in the shade, a porch on the finished end with fans in it.
A lean-to hangs off the main frame, so the frame has to be engineered to carry it. That is why it belongs in the first conversation rather than the third year.
Plenty of shops end up with a finished corner: an office, a bathroom, a break room, a place to sit down out of the dust. Because we are a general contractor, that is not a separate project you have to go find somebody for — the electrical, plumbing, mechanical and interior finish are ours too.
If the finished part keeps growing until you intend to live in it, you are talking about a barndominium, and that is a different conversation about design, insulation and finish. We build those as well.
The decisions worth getting right early
A shop is cheap to plan and expensive to change. Almost everything people wish they had done differently comes down to the same short list, and every one of them is nearly free while the frame is still on the drawing board.
- Clear height — measure the tallest thing that has to come through the door
- Door size and placement, and whether you need to drive straight through
- Where the power goes, and how much of it
- Slab thickness and the apron outside the doors
- Lean-tos and porches, engineered now even if you build them later
- Insulation, if you intend to work in there in August
None of that is exotic. It is just the part of the conversation that a company shipping you a kit has no reason to have with you.
Four framing systems
Every frame is designed for the specific load and building requirements of the job, not pulled off a shelf.
| Code | System | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| SR | Straight Rafter | Clear-span workhorse frame for shops, warehouses and general commercial spans. |
| WB | Wedge Beam | Tapered members that put the steel where the load is, for efficient longer spans. |
| SS | Single Slope | Roof drains one direction — useful on tight sites and retail frontage. |
| LP | Low Profile | Reduced roof pitch where height is limited by code, clearance or appearance. |
Standard panel and trim colors are available — ask us for the current color chart.
Fabricated in house
Rhodes started as a metal building dealer and began fabricating its own buildings in the late 1980s, initially for our own construction work. We still do.
That matters to you for one reason: the company that fabricates your frame also pours the foundation, erects it and finishes the inside. A building on its own is rarely the whole job, and that is the part most metal building companies cannot do.
Common questions
What is a pre-engineered metal building?
A building whose steel frame is engineered and fabricated for your specific spans and loads before it reaches the site, then bolted together there. It is not a kit off a shelf — the frame is designed for your building.
Does Rhodes make its own steel framing?
Yes. We began fabricating in the late 1980s, initially for our own construction work, and still do. That is why we can hold a price and a schedule rather than passing along someone else's delay.
Can I buy just the building, without the construction?
Yes. Most of our work is complete projects, but we will quote a building package on its own. Erection by itself is not a scope we take — we put up the buildings we supply.
How big a building can Rhodes do?
Clear spans without interior columns cover most commercial and industrial needs. Tell us the width, length and clear height you need and we will tell you what it takes.
Are metal buildings cheaper than conventional construction?
Usually, per square foot, and the foundation is lighter and cheaper too. The honest answer depends on what goes inside. Call with your use and we will give you a real number.
What is the difference between a shop building and a commercial building?
Mostly what it is for and what it has to satisfy. A shop on your own place is built for how you work: door sizes, clear height, power where you need it. A commercial building carries code, accessibility and inspection requirements that drive a lot of the design. The steel and the way we build it are the same.
Can I add a lean-to or a covered porch later?
It is far cheaper to design it in now. A lean-to hangs off the main frame, so the frame has to be engineered to carry it. Tell us up front even if you plan to build it in a few years, and we can engineer for it and leave you the option.
How tall should my shop be?
Clear height is the decision people most often regret. Measure the tallest thing that has to come through the door and go up from there — a lift, a raised dump bed, an tractor with the loader arms up. Adding height while the frame is being engineered costs very little. Adding it afterward means a new building.
Do I need a slab under the whole thing?
Not always. Some owners pour the working bay and leave the storage side or the lean-to on gravel. It depends on what is going on it and what you want to do later. We pour the foundations for what we build, so we will talk through it with you.
Shop on one side, finished space on the other
The same building, inside. A working shop at one end and a finished, conditioned room at the other.
Buildings we have fabricated and erected
Our own steel framing, put up by our own crews.
Start a project with Rhodes
Tell us what you need built and where. We will tell you honestly whether we are the right people for it.